If you DON’T want to understand one of the most powerful forces that drive people to overwork and destroy their families… this post is not for you.
But, if you want to keep your family intact and your habits in check, this might help you get the clarity you need.
Last time I told you the story of “John,” who constantly works to provide for his family, while his absence tears the family apart.
His family LIKES him, but never SEES him, and this is a problem for them, and perhaps for you as well.
Here’s the thing, though. Overwork is only a symptom of one (or both) of two “mind viruses” that are among the most powerful drivers in all of human experience: fear and greed.
Consider the case of fear.
Many people operate out of deep fear of LACK, a belief that no matter how good things look right now, at some point in the future they will NEED something but not HAVE it, and that will cause them pain.
Other people operate not with a fear of LACK, but with a fear of LOSS, a belief that at some point, somehow, “the hammer will fall” and what they have will be taken away.
One or both of these fears are usually at the root of what many experts call a “scarcity mentality,” and in cases like John’s, this pattern of thinking is like a slave driver that compels behaviors like overwork and more.
Perhaps you can see why this is so damaging,
If John’s behavior is driven by a scarcity mentality, it won’t matter how financially successful he becomes; it will never be enough.
He will always be afraid that a situation will arise where he won’t HAVE what he needs or he will LOSE what he has, and he can’t stand to let that happen.
This is why even though John really cares about his family, he is stuck in a cycle of fear based on deep-seated beliefs from his childhood, and his only way out is to break the loop.
Maybe that cycle sounds all too familiar.
You’ve reached goal after goal, achieved success after success, but somehow it’s never enough.
No matter how much money you make or how many assets you accumulate, you still can’t shake the feeling that you need just a little bit more to be “okay”.
It’s exhausting.
To make matters worse, if you have relationships with other people, it’s likely exhausting to them, too.
The waiting.
The wondering.
The constant feeling that they always take second-place.
…And feelings like that can only be ignored or endured for so long before somebody snaps.
So, what’s a person like John to do? What’s the solution for you? How do you “break the loop” of fear of financial lack or loss?
You start a new one.
Consider this. If you could break free from the fear loop by investing just 10 minutes a day, would you make the time?
I hope so, because it’s a small price to pay for a huge return on investment.
What does that 10 minutes look like?
That’s coming next time.
–pg
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Photo by Nate Neelson on Unsplash
#businessgrowth #fear #scarcity #mentality #focus #healthyrelationships #sustainablegrowth #entrepreneurship #psychology #winning #overwork #workaholism
